July 30, 2015, 2:14PM

Only trace chlorine levels, well below the state minimum requirements, were present in the St. Bernard Parish water system were the deadly brain-eating amoeba was found in the latest round of testing, according to the Department of Health and Hospitals. The low chlorine levels, detected in water samples collected last Friday (July 24), came a day after the parish began a "chlorine burn" intended to pump... Full story »

July 27, 2015, 5:13PM

Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals officials are set to meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday (July 27) in Chalmette to provide information and answer questions on the brain-eating amoeba found last week in St. Bernard Parish. State Sen. J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, is hosting the community meeting in the Nunez Community College auditorium, 3700 Fenelon St., Chalmette. "It is important the citizens in... Full story »

July 24, 2015, 9:03AM

Now that the state Department of Health and Hospitals has again detected a brain-eating amoeba in St. Bernard Parish, a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expert and a DHH spokesperson will be available in the comment stream below at noon Friday (July 24) to answer your questions. Leave your questions in the comments section below. The amoeba was... Full story »

July 23, 2015, 5:00PM

An Arabi mother is grappling with memories of her son's 2011 death after state officials this week said they once again found in St. Bernard Parish's water the brain-eating amoeba that killed him. The new positive test was taken at a sampling station at 948 Angela Street, just blocks from the 400 block of Angela, where Jeffrey Cusimano was exposed to the Naegleria fowleri amoeba in 2011. The state... Full story »

July 23, 2015, 1:11PM

After finding a brain-eating amoeba in St. Bernard Parish's water, the state Department of Health and Hospitals plans to conduct another set of testing Friday (July 24). The results, however, won't be known until next month, as the water samples must be examined for weeks to determine whether the amoeba is present. The new testing comes as Parish President Dave Peralta on Thursday... Full story »

July 23, 2015, 12:01PM

Less than a day after state officials announced they found a brain-eating amoeba in the St. Bernard Parish water system, Parish President Dave Peralta said "there is not an amoeba in the system" and that the positive test "was just an anomaly" caused by a problem in the testing mechanism. Peralta said Thursday (July 23) that the amoeba found at the sampling station... Full story »

May 12, 2015, 8:10PM

Two former St. John the Baptist Parish utilities workers were convicted Tuesday of lying about collecting and recording water samples at a site where a potentially deadly brain-eating amoeba was found in the water system, the state Attorney General's office announced Tuesday (May 12). However, former inspector Kevin Branch, 55, of LaPlace and Danielle Roussel, 43, of Paulina will avoid jail... Full story »

May 04, 2015, 5:07PM

A lawsuit filed after a brain eating-amoeba in St. Bernard Parish's water system killed a 4-year-old Mississippi boy in 2013 could reach a milestone soon, as the Parish Council on Tuesday (May 5) is set to consider whether to settle the case or go to trial. As it's pending litigation, the discussion Tuesday will be held behind closed doors, though any vote in the matter... Full story »

January 13, 2015, 9:40PM

The St. John the Baptist Parish Council, which last fall called for the resignation of the parish's utilities director, postponed a vote on Parish President Natalie Robottom's recommendation for a new department head during Tuesday's council meeting, which led to a heated exchange. Saying she had just received the candidate's information on Tuesday, and didn't have adequate time to... Full story »

January 13, 2015, 10:40AM

After resisting the St. John the Baptist Parish Council's calls to replace Utilities Director Virgil Rayneri in the wake of the drinking water contamination by a potentially deadly brain-eating amoeba, Parish President Natalie Robottom is expected to name a new director at Tuesday's council meeting, which is subject to Parish Council approval. Robottom is recommending Blake Fogleman, an engineer, to replace... Full story »

January 07, 2015, 11:35AM

St. John the Baptist Parish officials plan next week to end a months-long "chlorine burn" aimed at ridding a portion of its water system of a potentially deadly brain-eating amoeba. The decision comes after the state Department of Health and Hospitals confirmed that Water District 1 tested negative for the presence of the Naegleria fowleri amoeba. St. John will return to... Full story »

January 06, 2015, 5:21PM

After more than four months of injecting pure chlorine into a portion of the St. John the Baptist Parish water system, to rid it of a potentially deadly brain-eating amoeba, administration officials plan to revert to routine disinfectant next week. The Naegleria fowleri amoeba was detected in Water District 1 samples taken Aug. 12, prompting Louisiana state health officials to order... Full story »

December 19, 2014, 1:18PM

Samples tested by the state indicate that a potentially deadly brain-eating amoeba is no longer present in the St. John the Baptist Parish drinking water system, officials announced Friday. The Department of Health and Hospitals re-tested for the Naegleria fowleri amoeba in Water District 1 on Dec. 3, and those samples came back negative for the parasitic organism. "The St. John... Full story »

December 08, 2014, 2:47PM

Two St. John the Baptist Parish utilities workers, indicted in the state investigation of the amoeba-contaminated drinking water, pleaded innocent Monday to charges of malfeasance in office and filing and maintaining false public records. Trial is scheduled April 14 before Judge Sterling Snowdy in 40th Judicial District Court in Edgard. In a proceeding that took less than five minutes, former... Full story »

November 14, 2014, 6:59PM

Tuesday will mark the end of a 60-day "chlorine burn" period mandated by the state to eradicate a potentially deadly brain-eating amoeba from part of the St. John the Baptist Parish water system. But Parish President Natalie Robottom said it will continue, with workers flushing the system with elevated chlorine levels, until the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals... Full story »

October 30, 2014, 12:17PM

As St. John the Baptist Parish tries to eradicate a potentially deadly amoeba from a portion of its water system, the Parish Council wants the department head fired for poor management. Two water department employees have been indicted on criminal charges, and Parish President Natalie Robottom has suspended them. But she says she won't fire Utilities Director Virgil Rayneri while trying to... Full story »

October 29, 2014, 6:59PM

St. John the Baptist Parish President Natalie Robottom said Wednesday she doesn't intend to fire her Utilities Department director, despite a unanimous request from a Parish Council alarmed by the presence of a brain-eating amoeba in part of the water system. The council expressed its lack of confidence in Virgil Rayneri on Tuesday, a week after two Utilities Department... Full story »

October 21, 2014, 5:25PM

Two public employees who were indicted in the investigation of a brain-eating amoeba in part of St. John the Baptist Parish's water system surrendered for arrest Tuesday at the parish jail in LaPlace. Kevin Branch, 54, of LaPlace and Danielle Roussel, 43, of Paulina were booked with filing false public records and malfeasance in office and released on bond. Branch has been employed by the... Full story »

October 21, 2014, 1:18PM

Two public employees who are accused of falsifying data about part of the St. John the Baptist Parish water system contaminated with brain-eating amoeba surrendered for arrest Tuesday at the parish jail in LaPlace. Representatives of the state attorney general's office, which is overseeing the investigation and will prosecute the case, were en route to to handle the booking process, Sheriff Mike... Full story »